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This city will eat you alive. It's not going to be fun scraping by in NYC on minimum wage. Don't even think about coming to NYC without at least a bachelors degree or be skilled at a trade. You don't even need a fancy masters degree or to come from a top school. I've seen people with liberal arts degrees from podunk state college earning 6 figures here, it's actually pretty common. You just really need a bachelors degree to get your foot in the door - for any position, even secretaries have them in NY.

No, I am not going to do that. Thanks for the warning, though. As I said, if things do not work out, then I will just return home and try again after I finish my degree.

New York City is like a gem. It's like when someone asks you "Hey, where do you live?" and then you go "New York" and then he'll go "oh wow!". It is that great! So my point is, if you live in New York, society see it as an achievement. It's just that, if it takes one to live poorly in order to live in NYC, then I don't think it would be worth it. In my own opinion, you might as well live like a King at Tenessee and make it feel like a NYC with your $7000 than live in NYC and be treated like a slave.

I work as a dishwasher and attend college full-time while living in a hellish neighborhood in a city that is 'home' only to the dying or the dead. I would rather scrape by on my knees in NYC than live another damn moment in this place. I think it is hard for anyone to understand what it is like living in a place where there is nothing for you and nothing for you in the future there without actually having lived in a place like that.

A lot of you say that NYC costs too much and that there are no jobs, but the unemployment rate here is even higher and aside from the real estate, the costs are the same or more. There are very few opportunities to do anything here. In NYC, I could do so much. As long as you are willing to put yourself out there, the possibilities are limitless in NYC. That is not the case in Kingsport.

Now I appreciate the feedback I have received, whether for or against my plans, so thank you for taking the time to reply.

OP is right. I (and probably a lot of people) don't know what it is like to live in a place where there is nothing to do. But this is exactly why I keep asking this question. If your current situation is so bad, moving to *anywhere* must be improvement. Why does it have to be NYC in order for you to feel fulfilled? If you are at -1,000, reaching 0 must be a huge improvement. Why do you want to go all the way up to the most difficult place to make it? I'm just trying to understand why many people in rural America are drawn to NYC. Is it because that's what they hear about most? If I was in OP's situation all my life, I would probably be very happy move to Providence, RI or Hartford, CT, especially, if that's accordance with my resource. I don't want to "scrape by on my knees" just to exist in NYC. If I can have a decent life in some mid-sized city, I would choose that in a second. But obviously, many people disagree. Why?

OP is right. I (and probably a lot of people) don't know what it is like to live in a place where there is nothing to do. But this is exactly why I keep asking this question. If your current situation is so bad, moving to *anywhere* must be improvement. Why does it have to be NYC in order for you to feel fulfilled? If you are at -1,000, reaching 0 must be a huge improvement. Why do you want to go all the way up to the most difficult place to make it? I'm just trying to understand why many people in rural America are drawn to NYC. Is it because that's what they hear about most? If I was in OP's situation all my life, I would probably be very happy move to Providence, RI or Hartford, CT, especially, if that's accordance with my resource. I don't want to "scrape by on my knees" just to exist in NYC. If I can have a decent life in some mid-sized city, I would choose that in a second. But obviously, many people disagree. Why?

IMO, The media, movies, tv, etc etc play a big part. People see and hear about the HUGE tall buildings, the nightlife, Central Park, Times Square at 3am looking like it's 3pm in the afternoon, subways, taxis, tons of museums, literally thousands of restaurents and the list goes on and on and on. Saying you live in New York City especially Manhattan and I'll throw in Brooklyn since it's getting very popular with young people has a nice ring to it. People are like wow lucky you live in NYC! You get to see celebrities on the street, take a subway, be around those tall buildings, order food at 3am, etc. How many other cities can have traffic and trains being crowded at 10pm in the night or on the weekends?

The stereotypical is rural America is boring with nothing to do. Young people want to go partying, drink and clubbing. What other place to do that then NYC?

What a lot of people don't realize is NYC is brutal. What you see on TV and in the movies is fiction.

What's the point in all these places and things to do if you're always working just go paycheck to paycheck? Living with roommates. Living on top of each other. I rather have my own place with space. Some people see an apartment and house as just something to sleep in and take a shower, so who cares what kind of place I have? I only need running cold and hot water with heat and a bed.

My option is I rather live close to NYC to visit on a day trip, but living in the city? No way. Not for me.

OP is right. I (and probably a lot of people) don't know what it is like to live in a place where there is nothing to do. But this is exactly why I keep asking this question. If your current situation is so bad, moving to *anywhere* must be improvement. Why does it have to be NYC in order for you to feel fulfilled? If you are at -1,000, reaching 0 must be a huge improvement. Why do you want to go all the way up to the most difficult place to make it? I'm just trying to understand why many people in rural America are drawn to NYC. Is it because that's what they hear about most? If I was in OP's situation all my life, I would probably be very happy move to Providence, RI or Hartford, CT, especially, if that's accordance with my resource. I don't want to "scrape by on my knees" just to exist in NYC. If I can have a decent life in some mid-sized city, I would choose that in a second. But obviously, many people disagree. Why?

Quote:

Originally Posted by OrangeHudson

IMO, The media, movies, tv, etc etc play a big part. People see and hear about the HUGE tall buildings, the nightlife, Central Park, Times Square at 3am looking like it's 3pm in the afternoon, subways, taxis, tons of museums, literally thousands of restaurants and the list goes on and on and on. Saying you live in New York City especially Manhattan and I'll throw in Brooklyn since it's getting very popular with young people has a nice ring to it. People are like wow lucky you live in NYC! You get to see celebrities on the street, take a subway, be around those tall buildings, order food at 3am, etc. How many other cities can have traffic and trains being crowded at 10pm in the night or on the weekends?

I tend to slightly agree with these statements and wonder the same thing. For me, I moved here from Chicago and wanted to live here since I was little. I guess for many NYC is the biggest and most well known, besides LA and Chicago making it the first choice. Others move because they are drawn to the idea of living in NYC or are even inspired by movies which take place in NYC (most people who fall into this category quickly learn that only 5% of NYer's live like that). A poll showed 73% of college graduates from around the nation wanted to move to NYC possibly because how the media portrays New York.

And in this economy the jobless rates are so high in many other parts of the nation, even in some large cities, that the unemployment rate in NYC seems like no comparison. There's been a major uptick in the number of people moving to Chicago, NYC and LA since the recession.

Though, for someone moving to NYC straight from a rural area New York can be quite jarring, it can be a big culture shock and it will test your love of the city as there are moments when you can feel overwhelmed by the noise, density and residual stress of urban living. There are some factors of living in New York that weed out of lot of transplants. There are two sides of the city and it's better to live on the side where you're not scraping by. Living on the other side could cause bitter disappointment with NYC and I wouldn't wish financial stress on my worst enemy.

I'm not trying to put you off from moving here but I suggest first moving to a smaller city with a lower unemployment rate on the East Coast like Boston, Philly or Washington DC. That way you can get a feel for NYC, build up more savings for your move (you can never have enough money here) and do what I refer to as urban training for NYC.

That said, I admire your get up and go attitude of moving to NYC. Some people are motivated when their back is against the wall and they fight their way to a better situation, pulling themselves up by their bootstraps. Thousands of college age students have done just that and moved to the city with no job, no contacts or relatives in the city and no apartment- and made it because there are incredible people and opportunities that not many other cities have. Why else are we inundated with newcomers every year and so many people are crammed into Manhattan?

Because in a lot of ways NYC is one of the greatest and most vibrant cities in the world. But you need to be ready for it. If you think you're ready to move here pack you bags because at least you'll have an interesting stories and experiences to tell everyone.

just let us know how it all turns out cuz we all like rooting for the underdog. honestly, no one here will look down on you if you don't make it cuz we all know how tough it is. most of us are just barely hanging on.

I guess I have forgotten about one element of this, which is youth. There are definitely things that you can do and enjoy ONLY when you are young. Being reckless, jumping into something older people tell you not to do, ordering food at 3am, partying every night, hooking up with different girls every week, etc. At 43, these things no longer mean anything to me, but I do remember the time when I was 22, feeling completely invincible. We, older and (hopefully) wiser people consider that moving to NYC for the sake of partying with no adequate resource is dumb, but I do realize that young people view the world differently. Well, I guess I now should say, "Have a great time!"

OP is right. I (and probably a lot of people) don't know what it is like to live in a place where there is nothing to do. But this is exactly why I keep asking this question. If your current situation is so bad, moving to *anywhere* must be improvement. Why does it have to be NYC in order for you to feel fulfilled? If you are at -1,000, reaching 0 must be a huge improvement. Why do you want to go all the way up to the most difficult place to make it? I'm just trying to understand why many people in rural America are drawn to NYC. Is it because that's what they hear about most? If I was in OP's situation all my life, I would probably be very happy move to Providence, RI or Hartford, CT, especially, if that's accordance with my resource. I don't want to "scrape by on my knees" just to exist in NYC. If I can have a decent life in some mid-sized city, I would choose that in a second. But obviously, many people disagree. Why?

Exactly.

Hell, live in Philly, it's much cheaper with less competition for the menial jobs and you can go to NYC every weekend for $16 on Greyhound. It's less than 2 freaking hours away and Philly's not too bad of a town!

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